To start the play we have Macbeth, the thane of Glamis, a position that gives Macbeth a duty to the King, one that he must obey as Duncan was his superior. Even today, killing a king is one of the most serious crimes a citizen can commit. When Macbeth kills King Duncan, he is acting under his own power although not alone. I do believe that Macbeth holds 100% responsibility for his actions, even though we can all mildly sympathize with him due to the number of evils working against his fate. The witches are a huge game changer when it comes to Macbeth’s outlook on Kingship. Without the witches planting their prophecy in Macbeth, he never would have become ambitious toward the thrown. However, don’t forget that at the time of Shakespeare, it was believed that witches were not able to touch (i.e. kill) a king due to the divine rights of kings. This explains why the witches use manipulation to turn good to evil in order to upset the natural order. Act 1 Scene 3: Macbeth and Banquo are both given prophecies, and we see that there is a motive contained in them for both Banquo and Macbeth murdering King Duncan. Macbeth is …show more content…
given his prophecies in relatively simple terms, and Banquo is told a prophecy that is cryptic and confusing. Macbeth’s prophecies are: ‘FIRST WITCH All Hail Macbeth, Hail to thee, Thane of Glamis. SECOND WITCH All hail Macbeth, hail to thee, Thane of Cawdor. THIRD WITCH All hail Macbeth that shalt be king hereafter.’ And Banquo’s: FIRST WITCH Lesser than Macbeth, and greater. SECOND WITCH Not so happy, yet much happier. THIRD WITCH Thou shalt get kings, though thou be none. Although the prophecies that Banquo is given are equally tempting and meaningful, the main difference between Banquo and Macbeth is simply that Macbeth chose to believe and act on his, when Banquo did not. When Macbeth first met with the witches, their words throw his mind into chaos. Their mysterious oratory and presentation are symbolic of something he has not seen before, something supernatural. He is a soldier and loyal noble of the king, carrying out orders given to him and defeating the enemies of the kingdom, such as traitors like the former Thane of Cawdor. Macbeth had no reason to aspire to the thrown but when he heard these words: “Thane of Cawdor, Thane of Glamis and King hereafter,” he is served ideas of greatness, something which he had no idea was logical to dream of, as he was never to receive the crown. And so it is engraved into human nature to forget what one simply cannot achieve. Another idea, is that Macbeth has previously considered killing Duncan but has never had the initiative to commit it. Lady Macbeth is another influential character as the one who eventually coaxes Macbeth into killing the King. Macbeth writes Lady Macbeth a letter recounting the three prophecies and his thoughts on them, through which he draws Lady Macbeth into the murder by calling her, ‘My dearest partner of greatness, that thou mightst not lose the dues of rejoicing by being ignorant of what greatness is promised thee. ’ This not only showcases their truly romantic relationship with each other but also is Macbeth’s promise to Lady Macbeth of a Queen ship. Lady Macbeth depicts a fragile stereotypical woman of the time, but she is also the main instigator of King Duncan’s murder. Lady Macbeth, despite her elegant and delicate exterior, has an ambition maybe greater then Macbeth’s and a drive for greatness. Upon reading Macbeth’s letter, she is as motivated as Macbeth is. She sees as Macbeth does what has to be done to secure the final prophesy. We now know what Macbeth intents and we can already see the changes in Macbeth’s morality. Act 1 Scene 4: When Malcolm is entitled the Prince of Cumberland, Macbeth offers an aside that shows us just how over the edge he already is. ‘The Prince of Cumberland: that is a step On which I must fall down, or else o’erleap,’ Basically Macbeth is alluding the fact that he is willing to kill more than once to gain the crown. Women have long been considered as the milder and fair-minded sex. Lady Macbeth demonstrates her idea that she must be as cruel as men are to commit such heinous crime. She calls for the devil to unsex her, so that she can do as a man does and commit this crime and greedily think, to become more devious and give her the precision of mind to execute (no pun intended) this devilish act and to grant her the power to manipulate her noble husband into such an act. She wants to be ‘possessed’ to keep her feelings of guilt and regret from hampering her. Lady Macbeth plays an integral role in the play, no doubt, as she convinces Macbeth to proceed with the murder of the king. Conversely Macbeth permitted himself to be persuaded. Macbeth had been considering the murder changed his mind numerous times. Macbeth had many reservations about killing his king. I believe that if he had been the only party involved, Duncan may not have been murdered, because without the order from Lady Macbeth, I think that Macbeth has too great a sense of honor and virtue to straight up murder King Duncan. Lady Macbeth is using “emotional blackmail” on Macbeth, as he can’t focus on the irreversible harm he is about to do because he wants to be manly in his wife’s eyes. Macbeth is thinking about his courage not his honor; his pride is more important consequently even if the deed was immoral he would still do it to prove his valor. Although all of this is true, I think that the murder was performed against his will. Despite his devastation in the murder scene, Macbeth is, for the most part, responsible for the murder.
Macbeth had free will from start with the first meeting with the witches. He decides on his own to believe that the mystical powers of the witches will help him; and it is Macbeth and Lady Macbeth that make the witches prophecy come true. We have no reason to believe that the witches created the events we witnessed, since Macbeth could have simply been patient for the thrown to be passed to him naturally; but he didn’t wait. I believe the reason the witches are in the story is to start Macbeth’s thought process. While not taking part in any of the actual events, they entertain Macbeth’s fantasies, pushing him off on a slippery slope that result in Duncan’s death. I believe that the witches could only tempt Macbeth, they cannot control his
fate. Therefore the three Witches can only be accused for introducing these ideas, whereas Lady Macbeth is accountable for planning the schemes in Macbeth’s head, but neither are responsible for his actions during the play. The witches’ predictions bring great temptation, but in all reality, it is each person’s responsibility to not fall for the temptation, to resist their appeal. As much as I think Lady Macbeth, because of her persuading Macbeth to actually kill the king, is an integral part of the murder, Macbeth somewhat willingly let her persuade him so ultimately I believe that Macbeth is most responsible for the King Duncan’s death as it was his decision to fulfill the prophecies of the witches and give into the temptation that is power, manliness, and pride.
If anyone is to blame for starting this mess, it should be the Weird Sisters for telling MacBeth prophesies. “They told MacBeth that he would be Thane of Cawdor, and then become king in the future” (Shakespeare 17). After hearing the witches’ prophecy, MacBeth thinks that he must kill the current king, King Duncan, in order to take over the throne. “He writes a letter to his wife saying that he needs to kill Duncan in order to fulfill the witches’ prophesies” (Shakespeare 31). The witches are responsible for introducing the ideas to MacBeth which led to him killing Duncan in order to gain power. The witches had such a strong influence on MacBeth that they became a part of his brain and worked to transform him into this power-hungry monster. It was the killing of King Duncan that caused him to feel the need to kill more people, thinking that they were suspicious. Without the witches there to c...
...hey ignite reactions that result in fate with an almost good-humored behavior. They give Macbeth knowledge that causes him to make decisions he would not and could not have made without that knowledge. To remove these three characters would remove the origin of the motivations of Macbeth's actions, from his murder of King Duncan to his own tragic defeat. Duncan, Banquo, Lady Macduff, Young Siward, Macbeth himself - they would all still be alive had the witches not awoken ambition and fear in Macbeth's heart. The “audience's [belief] of whether or not the witches actually have power over Macbeth influence their interpretation of whether his actions result from personal choice or from external influence” (Riedel 1). The witches are an important part of Macbeth's plot, as the information they reveal sets things in motion. They are the catalysts of Macbeth’s demise.
Macbeth is captured by his wild ambition at the opening of the play when he and Banqou meet the three witches. The witches tell Macbeth that he is the Thane of Cawdor, and later will be king. They tell Banquo that his sons will be kings. Instantly Macbeth started to fantasize how he is going to be king. He understood that in order for him to become king he has to kill Duncan. “My thought, whose murder yet is but fantastical”(Act 1 Sc. 3, p.23). He was pondering about the assassination until the moment that he could no longer control his emotions. “To prick the sides of my intent, but only vaulting ambition, which overleaps itself and falls on the other-“(Act 1 Sc. 7, p.41). Because of his “vaulting ambition” he killed Duncan.
Firstly, we shall consider Lady Macbeth and Macbeth as they are the two who planned and performed the murder. Although after the witches told Macbeth that he was to be king and he was burning in desire to be so he, on first instance, decided that if fate had determined that he was to be the sovereign of Scotland he shouldn’t try to be reach the throne by his own actions, that it would come eventually: “If Chance will have me king, why, Chance / may crown me, / Without my stir”. However, it was Lady Macbeth who convinced him to slay the king so that he could usurp the throne: “Hie thee hither, / That I may pour my spirits in thine ear”. So we can say that Lady Macbeth has more responsibility on Duncan’s murder than Macbeth himself as she used her position as a wife and a woman to induce his husband to the sin. She knew the “adoration” Macbeth had for her (“My dearest love” referring to Lady Macbeth) and used her status of woman to judge Macbeth a coward if he didn’t kill Duncan. Even though Macbeth holds some blame for not...
Who controls the world’s fate? Is it man? Women? The supernatural? In the Shakespearean play, Macbeth, control bounces between Macbeth, Lady Macbeth, and the three witches, but only one is truly in control. Macbeth and Lady Macbeth are the only ones who want power over one another but the witches are the ones who have complete control. The witches are the ones responsible for the actions of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth and this is what gives them control.
Macbeth negates his moral responsibility as a person as well as a king. He doesn’t take into consideration that he will pay for all the evil deeds that he executes. Killing Duncan is the worst crime that is possible to commit since the kings were the closest in hierarchy next to god. It is evident that Macbeth is aware that this is an evil sin when he states, “ I dare do all that may be come a man, who dares do more is none.” (Act I Scene VII, Line 46-47) The previous statement shows that Macbeth believes that killing Duncan will make him nothing more than a beast. Nevertheless he goes against his morals and kills King Duncan. Sin is a prevalent theme in this play, Macbeth shows that he knows he has lived a sinful life, “Seyton I am sick at hearth, when I behold Seyton I have live’d long enough.” (Act V Scene III, Lines 20-22) Ambition takes over Macbeth when he decides to hire assassinators to kill Macduffs wife and children, “The castle of Macduff I will surprise; seize upon Fife; give to the edge of the sword in this line.”
The three witches in Macbeth are not the most powerful characters in the play, nor are they the catalyst to all of Macbeth’s crimes. At a first glance, it seems that the witches were the advocators to Macbeth’s actions. However, after another look at the situation, it isn’t hard to see that the witches only pulled out Macbeth’s dark side that was hiding just below the surface, and let him destroy himself. They only
...fter Macbeth kills Duncan, Banquo is suspicious that Macbeth “thou palyed’st most foully” in assuring that Macbeth’s prophecies became reality. (3.1.3) Macbeth is, however, is also suspicious of Banquo because he realizes that Banquo's "wisdom that doth guide his valour / To act in safety" (3.1158-59) will be even more reason for Banquo to turn Macbeth in for 1Duncan’s murder. Macbeth’s jealousy and suspicion causes him to hire murderers to murder Banquo and his son Fleance, the prophesied heir of the throne, in which he states how Banquo “was your enemy,” referring to the murderers, and how Banquo is Macbeth’s enemy as well, showing that Macbeth and Banquo’s relationship changed from camaraderie to being on opposing sides.
In Shakespeare’s Macbeth, he chronicled the story of Macbeth’s rise to power and all he encountered during that journey. One theme that is present throughout the entirety of the play is guilt. As the story progressed, it can be seen that guilt affects each character differently depending on their role in the play. However, every person deals with the guilt in their own way. Everyone is influenced by a feeling of regret at some point in their lives, and the way they deal with it will affect them in the long run. It can be seen taking a drastic toll, particularly on the characters of Macbeth and his wife, Lady Macbeth. Ultimately, the presence of guilt in someone is determined by how easily they let it affect them.
The witches have a strong effect on Macbeth's character; they highly influence him in his accomplishments and awake his ambitions. They give Macbeth a false sense of security with their apparitions of truths. Instead they prove to be harmful for Macbeth who takes too much comfort and confidence in his interpretation of the truths. They are the ones who plant the actual idea of killing Duncan into Macbeth's mind. But if it were only the witches prophecies, then Macbeth surely would not have murdered the king. 'When you durst to do it, then you were a man,' (Macbeth, Shakespeare Act 1 Scene 7) Lady Macbeth's constant harassment pushed Macbeth and made him commit all this evil. When you reason things out by yourself you tend to now what is right and what is wrong, a conscience. But with the outside influence from the witches he thinks that that is his destiny and he must do everything to fulfill it. One can wonder if Macbeth ever had a chance of doing what was right after he met with the witches. He is overthrown and killed. Through his own ambitions, the ambition of his wife and the witches' prophesies, Macbeth has caused his own destruction and downfall. We can now clearly see that ambition not achieved through our own ability leads to destruction. 'Hail Thane of Glamis and of Cawdor and shalt be King hereafter'. (Act 1 Scene 3) These prophecies from three strangers are taken without question and probably without good judgment. Just the thought that he may be King clouds his thoughts and ambition takes over. The witches can predict the future, they can add temptation, and influence Macbeth, but they cannot control his destiny.
The three witches told Macbeth his future and they knew he would try to stop them and they didn't tell him the consequences. “I have no spur to prick the sides of my intent, but only Vaulting ambition, which o'erleaps itself And falls on the other” (1.7.25-28) Macbeth wants the power to himself, as he is hungry for power and becoming royalty he would of been loyal to Duncan if he didn't know that he would be king if he had to kill him. They lead Macbeth into “Darkness” telling him what he wanted to hear and not what would happen if he went out of his way to stop the prophesies true which would end to him dying. These witches helped fuel his ambitions that made him crave
The witches Macbeth encounters at the beginning of the play are the primary motive for Macbeth’s actions. They manipulate Macbeth and lead him to unlawful actions. The witches prognosticate that Macbeth will be king: “All hail, Macbeth! that shalt be king hereafter.” (1.3.53).
In William Shakespeare’s play The Tragedy of Macbeth, the witches hold the most power to influence the actions of others because the witches give Macbeth five prophecies that spark his ambition that lead to his death and independent toying with human lives, clearly take a perverse delight in using their knowledge of future to toy with and destroy human beings. The witches give Macbeth five prophecies that spark his ambition that lead the Key to his death because when Macbeth and Banquo came upon the three witches and the witches say “All Hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, thane of Cawdor!” ; “All Hail, Macbeth, that shalt be king after.” (1.3. 50-51).
The witches influence Macbeth in his achievements and awaken his ambitions. They give him a false sense of security with their apportions of truths. The witches are the ones who made the idea of killing Duncan into Macbeth’s mind. They also told him that he would become thane of Cawdor and later would become king of Scotland. Macbeth wants to know more.
The witches played an undoubtedly large role in MacBeth, being the instigators of the entire plot. In act one scene three, the witches say: `all hail, MacBeth! Hail to thee, thane of cawdor! ... All hail, MacBeth, that shalt be king hereafter!' (Line 47-50) these prophecies throw into his mind the possibility of further advancement to the highest level of the nobility. If the witches had not told MacBeth of their prophesies, there is little chance he would have thought about them himself, and even less chance he would have murdered king Duncan.